Idealized picture of Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson creating the Declaration of Independence.
On July 2nd, 1776, Congress voted to declare independence from Britain. Two days later, the wording of the official Declaration of Independence was approved. It is this world-changing action that has been celebrated on the fourth of July every year as Independence Day.
Though the declaration was initially printed as a broadside, the most famous version of the document was a signed copy like the one pictured below, with John Hancock’s famous flourish leading the group’s list of signatures (see a clearer copy here). Though the original manuscript has long since been lost, copies of the declaration have all come originally from that first document.
Signed copy of the Declaration of Independence
Other documents represent important happenings in American history. Can you identify these famous pages of the United States’ milestone moments?
If you guessed that they were the Constitution, Bill of Rights, and Gettysburg Address, you’re absolutely right. All of these papers are part of times gone by that shaped the past–and future–of the United States.
Curious to see more of these important pages? Check out the rest of the American Milestone Documents on Fold3.